defrost

verb

de·​frost di-ˈfrȯst 

ˈdē-ˌfrȯst

defrosted; defrosting; defrosts

transitive verb

1

: to release from a frozen state

defrost meat

2

a

: to free from ice

defrost a refrigerator/freezer

b

: to clear (a window or windshield) with a vehicle's defroster

defrost a windshield to clear it of ice and condensation

intransitive verb

: to thaw out especially from a deep-frozen state

Examples of defrost in a Sentence

You can defrost the soup in the microwave.

Has the refrigerator defrosted yet?

Recent Examples on the Web

From a food safety perspective, freezing and defrosting deviled eggs is low-risk. —Taylor Tobin, Southern Living, 18 Apr. 2025

Unless someone inside the federal government continues to ensure the liquid nitrogen doesn’t totally evaporate, the samples will eventually defrost and begin to rot, according to three staff researchers who work with such materials. —Caroline Haskins, Wired News, 17 Apr. 2025

There were no sanitizer buckets in the kitchen and a container of ground beef was defrosting incorrectly, according to the report. —Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2025

Watch this video to learn how to quickly defrost frozen meat. —Cody Godwin, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1895, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Rhymes for defrost

• accost
• crisscrossed
• embossed
• exhaust
• recrossed
• uncrossed
• bossed
• cost
• crossed
• dost
• glossed
• lost

Kids Definition

defrost

verb

de·​frost di-ˈfrȯst 

ˈdē-

1

: to free from a frozen state : thaw out

defrost meat

2

: to free from ice

defrost a refrigerator

3

: to remove fog or condensed moisture from

defrost the windshield